possible pink

The sun is shining bright in Sydney this morning, I'm wearing my pink runners, leggings & tee with pink hair of course & I'm going out to run 40k... Remembering anything is possible!! 
Happy Sunday xo

rad running & rice

I may have mentioned like a million times my love/hate affair with running intervals training, well I'm having a 'hot & steamy session' this week with the heart rate boosting babe/beast! 
I've actually added a 5k Wednesday run into my routine & it is giving me strong good fit vibes.

"& it goes a little somethin' like this" (cue run DMC beats!!)

2k warm up @ 11k/hr pace
then the fun begins...
fast 1 mins @ 15.5k/hr pace
slow 1 mins @ 10k/hr pace
for 15 mins... 
feel that heart start pumpin'
& slow run recovery for 1k, yay.

Happy Friday... Having a ricey randomly prepped kinda protein/carb loading dish for my long running weekend... The target 20k tomorrow + 45k on Sunday, I'm gonna need this --->

Tempeh brown rice risotto salad ~
1 cup cooked brown rice
2 handfuls spinach leaves
diced tempeh pieces
12 pomodoro tomatoes
1/2 avocado
chopped cucumber 
1 lemon juiced
olive oil drizzled
tblsp pumpkin seeds
chilli flakes
sea salt & black pepper

this weeks' wanderings

Happy with my table of training this week. Feeling strong. Unlike my motherland's football team!! My interval training quicker than an England teams' world cup exit!! & that's fast..

Mon:  yoga
Tue:   1 mile swim
Wed:  yoga + 5k interval training + 2x fast k's @ 4.30min k's
Thu:   yoga
Fri:     1 mile swim
Sat:    20 tempo run - 15k @ 5.30min k's + 5k warm up & slow down
Sun:   36k run - 4 hours

So this is what you need to survive a 4 hour run on a Sunday - hydration & energy being key. A little pain relief wasn't actually needed, nor was the gel, I'm trying to give my body natural energy so all my bliss balls were devoured & bananas are awesome boosters. & vaseline for the chafe. Finished on my yoga mat with some stretching & kundalini yoga for the spirit...

chocolate mousse crunch

My friends have been asking me recently for the recipe of my raw vegan 'chocolate mousse crunch' well, here it is...

For the base.
1 cup nuts (I use walnuts, almonds)
1 cup dates
1/4 cup raw cacao
2 tsp coconut oil
tsp cardamom

Put all in a food processor & blend to a dry paste. Press into the base of a pie dish.

For the mousse.
1 avocado
1/4 cup raw cacao
2 tblsp agave syrup
1 tsp organic vanilla

Again blend in the food processor to smooth. Spread over the base & finish with coconut flakes sprinkled on top! Chill. Amazingly good...

are you winning?

YOU'VE GOTTA BE IN IT TO WIN IT...

How do you become a winner? Winning in life is what I'm writing about, I believe in goal setting & achievement getting, & as a runner it's about striving & literally striding towards a race. & with my next ultra entered I'm thinking about how I'm going to win. Racing to me isn't about competing for 1st place, I'll leave that to the incredible elite athletes, for me it's about being competitive personally & racing within my capabilities & pushing outside myself on the day to get my own podium finish. & finishing 100k being the big win for me. Crossing the finish line, there's no better feeling & I want to take that taste of triumph through to my everyday challenges to help me get those daily life wins too. & the winners' special prize? Happiness, confidence, peace of mind, efficiency, great energy & paying that good stuff forward. I choose to WIN!

CHOOSE LIFE tees were my fashion aspiration when I was 8! & George Michael was the dream! I'm really vibin' the winning fashion themes right now trending. Inspired. Thinking of a new running top/cape combo for my race with some motivation affirmation logos going on...

pink wraps

My life, much like many of you I imagine, revolves around the ritual of feeding myself & food for fuel, food for comfort & food for creation, food for thought & food for the soul. 
I make healthy hearty soups, curries, chillis, potato variations, veggie combinations, warming foods for my dinners in winter & cool salads in the summer.
& nutty cacao coconut desserts figure a lot in my food fancies.
For my lunches tho, they have to fit into my work schedule day, a dynamic diarised day, so that involves the chopping & slopping together of a sandwich made early in the morning before work whilst still half asleep. 
But now I have a fave. & it's pink. It's pretty perfect then. Well, slightly wilting by lunchtime but still full of goodness & filling my insatiable appetite for the latter half of the working day.

My perfect lunch of luv... 

X2 mountain bread wraps together 
beetroot hummus (the pinkness)
1/4 avocado
sprouted beans
tomato
cucumber slices
spinach leaves
squeeze of lemon juice
pink himalayan salt

& pop in the lunchbox; a handful of almonds & a pink lady apple for lunchtime protein & dessert...

energy for my 50ks

My super special recipe for amazing surprisingly tasty yet so healthy, homemade protein/energy bars to promote great power to the people.

11/2 cups (soaked & cooked & drained) chickpeas
tblsp honey
1/4 cup almond butter
tsp cardamom 
1 cup oats
1/4 cup raw cacao
tblsp maca powder
salt & pepper
6 chopped fresh dates
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Blend the ingredients in a food processor (add the oats in last & pulse) spread the mixture onto a baking sheet & bake for 15 mins... Cut into 12 squares.

This helped me to knock out 50ks of running around this weekend.. I am certainly not taking on this ultra training with an ounce of irreverence, total respect to the distance & to the art of endurance sports. Yours with sore feet, tired legs but strong heart & focused mind xox 

ultra affirmation...

centennial park ultra entered!!!

Um this just happened...

Yes 100k Centennial park run entered... 
Yes I am excited/nervous/petrified/determined/pumped!!!
This happens on August 3rd. 28 laps of the pretty park in Sydney. In under 12 hours. Better get focused. Better get running!

Last week:
SAT - 40k (6 hours) trail running in the mountains
SUN - 10k (11/2 hours) trail running in the mountains
MON - rest + 2x 20 min walks
TUE - 11/2 k swim + 2x 20 min walks
WED - 20 mins intervals + 20 mins strength + 1 hour walks
THU - 11/2 k swim + 2x 20 min walks
FRI - 1 hour yoga + 2x 20 min walks

This week:
SAT - 1 hour yoga
SUN - 16k tempo run
MON - rest
TUE - 10k run
WED - 2k swim + 2x 20 min walks
THU - 30 min intervals + 30 min strength training
FRI - 1.5k swim + 2x 20 min walks

Tomorrow: a 50+k run around the scene of the event in Centennial park, see just where I'm at! Running around (& around & around...) I'll get back to you on that! 

less is more...

bean burgers

My long weekend invite was to a BBQ yesterday. A veggie vegans not-so-favoured feast of well, meat & more meat!! I however made some scrumptious spicy bean burgers to take with me & still enjoy my whole foods & as they were so damn good (even the meat devourers giving them a chance & some culinary compliments) I'm sharing my recipe.. Serve with barbecue baked potatoes (bake in foil rubbed with olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper)

2 tins red kidney beans (rinsed & drained)

2 carrots (grated) I got mine from farmers market =)

1/2 cup organic rolled oats

1/4 cup pepitas

tblsp olive oil (chilli infused)

tsp coriander

tsp cumin

tsp cinnamon

tsp cayenne pepper

tsp onion salt

tsp sea & black pepper

Pop the oats & pepitas in food processor & roughly chop up for 10 secs.

Add 3/4 beans, carrots, & oil & spices. Blend it. Then move the mixture to a mixing bowl, Mix in the remaining beans. & with wet hands shape the stickiness into patties.

Bake on a sheet in the oven 200* for 40 mins. Then later warm thru on the barbie...

beautiful blue

My beautiful blue tinted photos from my flounce in the mounts this weekend. The blue mountains is pretty chilly around this time of year but I escaped the heavenly downpour on Sunday by an hour, my 40k run on Saturday & 10k on Sunday completed in cool but clear climes. 
The weather all weekend was overcast but that didn't take away the stunning scenes & nature vibes I felt as I ran/walked along the trail serenaded by some sounds of birds so brill & shrill.
I made mountain bread sandwiches =) of natural peanut & cacao butter with mashed bananas for great energy & had some salted peanuts too for maintaining my electrolyte balance. Washed down with lots of water so no fluoro sugary nastiness just fresh whole foods & H2o. 

I was out there for 6 hours pretty much on my lonesome but there were some strange growling noises going down at one point, clearly my mind wandered & I was certain I was being stalked by a predatory killer cat ready to pounce on me, I even had my defence all planned out - to curl into a ball & play dead. & if that didn't work, to share my sandwiches with the savage =)

I survived. I also stormed up the mountain that looms large at the end of the 40k's. Without stopping. Good feeling. Great running. Happy days.

 the Blue mountains National park of sheer beauty & steep hills...

 super scary bridge - before...

 & after!!

the six foot track & I - besties!!

& that mountain way back in the distance - my finish line.